Palestine is in crisis. Today Palestinians suffer daily human rights abuse and live in crushing poverty in refugee camps and under Israeli occupation.

In response to this injustice, international musicians have come together to release the song ‘Freedom for Palestine’ by OneWorld. By securing the first ever chart hit on Palestine they hope to send a message to politicians that Israel's illegal occupation of Palestine must end.

OneWorld includes Maxi Jazz (Faithless), LSK, the Durban Gospel Choir, members of the London Community Gospel Choir, Jamie Catto (1 Giant Leap), Harry Collier (Kubb), Andrea Britton, Sudha (Faithless), Andy Treacy (Faithless / Moby / Groove Armada), Attab Haddad and Joelle Barker. The project is the brainchild of producer and composer Dave Randall (Slovo/Faithless) who has written and produced the song.

In the last year international artists such as Faithless, Massive Attack, Elvis Costello, Gil Scot Heron, Tindersticks, Klaxons and Gorrillaz Sound System have all cancelled gigs in Israel in protest at the country’s increased repression of Palestinians. Their decision to do so reflects a growing consensus amongst musicians for the need to stand up against human rights abuse in Palestine as artists did during the Anti-Apartheid movement against the racist South African regime in the 1980s.

‘Freedom for Palestine’ by OneWorld will be released on the 3 July 2011 to coincide with the 7th anniversary of the International Court of Justice opinion that the Separation Wall being built by Israel in the West Bank is illegal and should be torn down.

The project, associated webpages and social media will go fully live on 31 May 2011 with a teaser campaign starting from Saturday 14 May. The music video will be launched on the 31 May and the single will be available to pre-order on iTunes and HMV digital from this date.

www.freedomoneworld.org
www.twitter.com/freedomoneworld
www.facebook.com/freedomoneworld

Proceeds raised from the single will go to UK registered charity War on Want to support projects in Palestine.
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The objective of this one-and-a-half day conference was to critically evaluate the strategies, limitations, successes and failures of efforts to address Palestinian rights in a variety of different court systems in the United States and abroad.

This topic is one of both practical and academic significance. As a practical matter, those considering avenues for advancing Palestinian rights need to make strategic judgments about where to invest resources, and whether, in particular, law suits make sense as a tool for justice or not. Examining litigation in support of Palestinian rights in a variety of different legal environments should also yield insight on the conditions under which courts can serve the struggles of politically disempowered groups to achieve justice, and thus contribute to broader theoretical discussions as well.

The conference drew together leading academics and practitioners of diverse backgrounds and experiences, and was the first of its kind to be held in the United States.  It took place at the UC Hastings College of Law on 25 and 26 March 2011.

Watch videos online here

Presenter Lauren Booth interviews Rashad Yaqoob, co-founder of the Palestine Legal Aid Fund - an unprecedented initiative to fundraise for the cost of legal action defending Palestinian rights, inspired by the successes of a similar fund during the South African anti-apartheid movement. Patron Michael Mansfield QC and Chairperson Mary Nazzal-Batayneh are also interviewed.

Clancy Chassay asks why Israeli drones with optics capable of seeing the colour of a target's clothes killed so many Palestinian civilians during the recent Gaza invasion: